


Bitter Hearts

by Kasbaka



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, Mental Health Issues, Minor Violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-14
Updated: 2020-06-14
Packaged: 2021-03-03 22:01:50
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,595
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24722740
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kasbaka/pseuds/Kasbaka
Summary: Life on the surface wasn't always easy. Humans with killing intent lurked everywhere. A close call with Edge leads Red to blaming himself, but Sans is there to help keep him together.
Relationships: Sans/Sans (Undertale)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 36





	Bitter Hearts

**Author's Note:**

> My first time delving into writing! Thought I'd keep it short and sweet and see how things go. I love this fandom with all my heart and I am excited to get into more in depth stories!

The cold air wasn’t enough to cool the heat in his bones. If anything, it felt bitter. It made him even angrier. Could he feel angrier? He wasn’t sure. It already felt as if he was on the verge of splitting open.

At some point, he’d stopped breathing. He didn’t really need to breathe, being a skeleton had its perks. And his own trembling breaths added to the unbearable noise that was making this night intolerable enough.

_You deserve this._

He knew! He already knew and didn’t need to hear it anymore. He ground his teeth in frustration. He clenched and unclenched his fists, restless with the desire to choke something out. Or to claw at his bones hard enough to add to the array of scars he’d gotten from the Underground. But Edge would have questions. He would not be happy. So Red remained restless with violent intent. His body bobbed slightly, as if already drawn into combat. He didn’t bother to still himself, he needed some kind of release.

_He deserves better._

It’s true. Edge deserved the best this pathetic universe could offer, and instead he was stuck with human pests that wouldn’t blink if his dust was scattered across the sidewalk. Filthy animals that felt they deserved the surface and everyone else should quietly stay locked in their underground cages. The humans wanted Asgore dead. As a proud member of the Royal Guard, Edge stood as his shield. Undyne had jumped on the opportunity to bring him onboard when they’d first arrived. The dogs alone were having difficulty managing the sheer numbers within the human city.

Edge, however, had a presence about him. He demanded attention. He was powerful and terrifying, enough to cause even the bravest of humans to cower under his glare. Not many were senseless enough to cross his path, and if they did, well…

The King of this universe was so different from their own. He insisted upon Mercy, although his LV betrayed him. Fucking hypocrite. For the future of humans and monsters, he would say. Although he’d never agree out loud with anything the stupid fluffy monster said, he supposed there was some sense to it. The humans outnumbered them. The humans had won the last war. They’d win again.

But Red didn’t care about Asgore or building a future within the human society. He only cared about his brother. They’d been through everything together. Starved, scrapped, and dusted their way through an unforgiving life. Edge earned his position in the Royal Guard through a ferocity so intense that he couldn’t be ignored. Red became the judge so he could be closer to Edge. So he could have his back.

_And look where that got him._

They’d had it worked out since they were kids. Edge had all the HP. He could take a hit if he had to. He was loud and commanding. And while everyone’s eyes were on him, Red would stay back and read them like books. He knew which monsters had a true killing intent and who was just gusto. That’s why he was the judge. At his signal, Edge could put down any threat. Not that he really needed Red, he was tough as nails on his own, but the backup didn’t hurt when the enemy had numbers on their side.

_Until tonight._

“SHUT UP!” Red shouted and punched the cave wall hard enough to ding his HP. It felt good. He was trembling with fury and needed something, anything, to satisfy himself with. Pain was familiar. He could handle that.

“you could at least wait until i got the first joke out to tell me to shut it.”

Red flinched, startled. If anyone could sneak up on him it’d be Sans. But he was off his game tonight, it could have been anyone.

_Pathetic._

“busy night tonight, huh? big ambassador gathering. heard there was a ruckus.” Red scoffed at Sans prompt. Sans wasn’t an idiot, he already had all the information. He stuffed his fists into his jacket and turned his gaze away from the other.

_You don’t deserve either of them._

His soul clenched at the thought. It hurt most because he knew it was true.

“How’d ya guess I was here, Sansy?” He was deflecting. They both knew it. Sans was easy going though, never pushing too hard. Sans looked up at the night sky, “this is the best place to see both the stars and the sunrise. call it a lucky guess.”

The place they both first witnessed a taste of freedom. It was meaningful, even if in reality it was just a cave mouth surrounded by mud and rocks. The humans had no appreciation for it, drowning out the stars with electric lights.

“your bro is worried about you.”

_He shouldn’t be. It’s your fault he almost dusted._

“He’ll get over it.”

Sans hummed thoughtfully, “ya know, that’s the thing about a Papyrus, they really don’t. they’re very stubborn. he was gonna come up here himself, but i figure you’d need a little space. so i came instead. seeing as how i take up less space.”

Only silence responded. If it bothered Sans, he didn’t show it. Red couldn’t help but glance at him. Sans was perfect. He was patient and funny. He was loyal and strong.

_He wouldn’t have let this happen._

There was no judgement in Sans face when he looked at Red. Only the eyes of someone who’d scattered his own brother’s dust, felt the same pain and grief. That timeline had passed, but the scars remained.

_If he had been the one counting on you, you’d be scattering his dust right now._

He could see it too, the dust crumbling Sans into nothing. Blowing away in the night’s breeze as if he were never there. He clenched his eyes shut and turned away. It was too much. He couldn’t lose both of them--

He felt a sharp grip on his chin, pulling his face forward. Sans sharp gaze met his. When had he moved?

“it wasn’t your fault, Red.”

“ _It was!”_

For a moment, he didn’t realize he’d even said it aloud. His thoughts had been torturing him for hours. It was hard to distinguish them from the noise around him. It was the price he paid for his failures.

“there were dozens more humans than we expected. you couldn’t scan all of them that quickly. some had masks on, for fucks sake!”

“He was counting on me. And I let him down. Plain and simple.” Red’s sharp toothed smile was betrayed by his lack of eyelights. He could still see it, the chaos that erupted. The sound of gun, much louder than rare one that fell into the Underground. Much longer range than he expected. If it had pierced Edge an inch to the right, it would have shattered his soul.

_How many times does he have to die because of you--_

“be quiet. that’s enough.” When Red looked up, San’s wasn’t looking at him; he was looking _through_ him. He shivered. Could he hear it too? Did these voices haunt him when Papyrus died? Red believed so. Sans grabbed his arms and squeezed them tightly. The pain was grounding in a way that it never was when he hurt himself. Sans was safe when nothing else was. It took all the fight out of him, left him drained and exhausted. He leaned his head forward onto Sans shoulder.

“he’s alright. he was already giving orders to the guards before Undyne forced him to go home. she threatened to make him take a vacation and everything. he looked terrified, really.”

“Heh, I bet his face was priceless.”

“you should come home and see it for yourself.”

Red thought about it for a moment. He shook his head. No, he wasn’t ready to face him just yet. Edge would forgive him. And he couldn’t handle that tonight.

“ok bud, no problem. come back to my place then. we can sleep for the next twelve hours, have lazy sex, and eat pancakes tomorrow.”

“Waffles are better.”

“im gonna pretend i didn’t hear that, since you’re obviously delusional tonight.”

Red chuckled quietly and honestly. He wrapped an arm around Sans spine and pulled him close. They stood together in blissful silence until the first rays of the sun began to climb the horizon. There was no rush. They knew a shortcut home.

“i do have one question, though.” Sans muttered thoughtfully.

“What would that be, sweetheart?”

Sans easy grin never left, but Red could see the change. “they didn’t find the guy. Undyne and the other guard are still looking for him. you know anything about that?” Sans sometimes looked at Edge like he was his own brother too. He felt the same protectiveness that Red did. No difference in universe would change that. And once again, a human almost came between them. There was a price to pay for that. Someone was going to have a very bad time.

“Nah, I don’t know nothin’ ‘bout that. The King doesn’t take kindly to killin’ these humans, so I’ve been behavin’. But Mt. Ebott is pretty dangerous, ‘specially at night. Humans have been known to fall into the Underground. And I’m pretty sure Pap’s puzzles are still activated. Could get dangerous.”

“especially if someone kept them calibrated. added spikes and fire. really terrible stuff. welp, too bad you don’t know anything.”

The sun was especially warm this morning, or perhaps it was Sans presence. He grinned, satisfied, and let himself be pulled through the shortcut home.


End file.
